Bowlers put Australia on top on third morning in Durban

Pat Cummins spearheaded a strong bowling performance, while Steven Smith once again showcased his mastery in the slips as Australia moved into a strong position in the first Test against South Africa on the third morning in Durban.

South Africa had started day three well with the runs flowing off the bats of Aiden Markram and new No. 3 David Bedingham under sunny skies. But they succumbed to the disciplined attack as South Africa lost three wickets for 15 runs in the backend of the first session to stare down the barrel.

Smith backed up the bowlers by claiming two sublime catches that lifted him past Joe Root for the most Test catches by a non-wicketkeeper. With great anticipation, Smith moved into position to snare skipper Temba Bavuma, who had unfurled a reverse-sweep off Nathan Lyon. Smith then pulled off a stunning catch to dismiss Bedingham, diving across first slip - it was No. 221 of his Test career.

It was a disappointment for Bedingham, who was dismissed for 49 from a position he had never previously batted at in Test cricket.

After a wretched day two, where their attack was helpless against an impregnable Matt Renshaw before the late wicket of opener Ryan Rickelton for a duck, South Africa looked to bat for the long haul in perfect conditions. The Kingsmead surface has flattened, with little of the extra bounce and movement that proved quite difficult for Australia's batters on the opening day. With a day of toil in the field looming, Australia aimed to strike with what was still a new ball after only 8.4 overs were bowled after bad light cut short day two.

Cummins, who was only four deliveries into his first spell before day two ended, challenged both batters from the get-go. He had a big lbw shout on Markram turned down and he wisely did not call for the review with replays showing the ball was heading over the stumps.

He then conjured steep bounce reminiscent of earlier in the match when he had Bedingham in a tangle, but the leading edge flew over the slips for a boundary.

Cummins tried to repeat the dose, but delivered a tame short delivery that was dispatched to the boundary by Bedingham. The batters started to cash in after fighting through the early challenge, with Bedingham hitting Hazlewood for a gorgeous straight drive to the boundary.

Having entered the attack 40 minutes into the day's play, Lyon found his groove right away, which was a far cry from his South Africa counterparts Keshav Maharaj and Simon Harmer, who were counter-attacked in Australia's first innings.

South Africa's scoring stalled and the pressure took its toll on Bavuma, who made just 3 from 27 balls before falling to Lyon.

Just before lunch, Lyon thought he had taken a second wicket when Wiaan Mulder edged to Marnus Labuschagne at first slip, but third umpire Richard Illingworth deemed the ball had touched the turf.